Apple spins out wireless mouse and keyboard

By 09.17.2003 :: 9:24AM EDT09.17.2003

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the apple engineers didn't listen to my plea, but still managed to develop a wireless keyboard that might be okay. steve jobs introduced both a wireless keyboard and mouse that are bluetooth-based at the apple expo. the wireless keyboard and mouse utilize adaptive frequency hopping bluetooth technology and secure 128-bit encryption. i still don't understand what apple's infatuation with the one-button mouse is. fortunately, i can purchase the keyboard by itself for us$69 and avoid the wireless mouse that would run another $69.

user comments 36 comment(s)

kinda expensive(9:28am est wed sep 17 2003)i bought a wireless mouse/keyboard combo for $35 and free shipping. they work great (i don't have it for this computer – another computer – but they still work great).and yes, the 1 button mouse must go… people (even non-computer users) are savvy enough to figure out more than 1 button (a car has a gas pedal, a break pedal, and a steering wheel and people manage to figure that out without too much trouble) – by mike

i'm a mac user(9:36am est wed sep 17 2003)but there is no way to justify these purchases. i have a kensington wireless with built-in recharge dock and it works great. best part is the scroll pall and 2 other buttons. but i don't really see the advantage of the apple mouse. but i think apple may have other things in mind and a trully revolutionary input device waiting in the wings. – by 970

if you don't like the stupid one button mac mouse, plug in any usb based mouse and rock and roll.

no worries. – by geekthebarbarian

how many more(10:11am est wed sep 17 2003)times does geek.com have to put out articles on apple's wireless keyboards and mice? this is i think the third article on it. wtf is wrong with people? i know this is one of apple's new *breakthrough* technologies, but still, this is too much? – by wd

one button mice(10:26am est wed sep 17 2003)i'm a reformed mac user and i have to agree, the one button mouse thing is seriously dated. i got an intellimouse with my last mac (which was a while ago) and stuck the funky, transparent, and inconveniently shaped mouse that came with it in a cabinet somewhere. i've yet to see an apple mouse i like (besides in their appearance of course, apple is good at making pretty products), although i admit it's been a while since i looked at new apple mice. – by dragon lady

he amount of times i've had to say 'no not the right button, use the left'

you guys are just brain washed by bill gates..two button just make the pc more complicated and less user friendly…

don't complain about it just admit that you are used to two buttons and therefore are trapped in the microsofy pc compatibility trap – by macgod

apple will release a 2 button mouse(11:01am est wed sep 17 2003)when microsoft releases an os that's not full of holes. i mean come on, yeah for geeks a one button mouse won't cut it but for the average person it's ok. i'm a unix guy and i can't live without a 3 button mouse, so there, neener neener. i also need magnum condoms. and to those with your logitech wireless stuff, is it bluetooth? is it encrypted? i have to agree with wd (no no no) that it's geek.com's fault for posting non news just to spark a reaction. it doesn't matter. – by one two three

2 buttons are better than one(11:07am est wed sep 17 2003)everywhere in the world of computing, not just the pc world, a 2-button mouse is the standard. why apple digs it's heels in on this is beyond me. here are a few arguments for the multi-button standard.1) laptop: since apple refuses to give me a 2 button trackpad, i am forced to control/click. i have no other choice but to do it or lug around a mouse.2) desktop: if we were talking about a $400 throw-away pc i wouldn't care, but at the mac's price range i should not have to buy a 3rd party mouse.3) ergonomics: combination keystrokes are definitely harder on the hand and wrist than a right mouse click. rmd's are much more likely with a one-button mouse.if apple ships a 2 button mouse, those who do not want to use it don't have to. however, by not giving us the option, those of us who would prefer to have to buy a worthless one-button mouse every time we buy a mac. then we get to go out and buy a real 2-button scroll wheel mouse – by nopc zone

key commands(11:19am est wed sep 17 2003)the reason apple mice only have one button is because there's a keyboard right next to it with a whole bunch of buttons. i can't believe so many of you aren't smart enough to memorize the keyboard commands. using a one button mouse with your right hand and key-commands with your left is infinitely faster than right click-context menu crap. there's no comparison- you just have to be smart enough to memorize the commands. i think apple believes that their simple users only need one button, while their power users are intelligent enough to use key commands. it is the best solution. i don't want to hear how right clicking anything is faster than key commands, because it's not. where are the power users? not on this site apparently. – by death cube k

death cube k(11:49am est wed sep 17 2003)with u there, i can whip any of my mates arses when it comes to work output on a mouse and a keyboard than just relying on a second mouse button to do the work. never laughed harder than when watchin pc jockies trying to work smart in quark! – by spacca

keyboard and mouse(12:12pm est wed sep 17 2003)(“they should be independent of one another. if they're not, than that defeats the purpose of their existence” -wd)

just picked that out as the funniest thing in your little flame rant. if you don't know how to use your keyboard and mouse together you can't possibly know what you're talking about. your keyboard is not a typewriter, nor is your mouse a console joystick. you just rant because you can, not because you know anything. key commands are a language, far more intricate and powerful than anything you pack into 3,4, or 15 button mouse. don't tell me it sucks because you're illiterate. – by death cube k

i'll take one…. thanx(12:23pm est wed sep 17 2003)well the new keyboard looks really cool. i think i'm going to head out to the apple store today and pick up one of those babys. – by mingisback

re:death…(1:21pm est wed sep 17 2003)just picked that out as the funniest thing in your little flame rant. –you picked the only thing you thought you can comment wisely upon. you failed miserably.

if you don't know how to use your keyboard and mouse together you can't possibly know what you're talking about. –i can browse the web with my mouse. i can scroll and close and open windows with my mouse, without the need of using a keyboard, ever. if i had to do that using the keyboard only, then mind as well, i'd rather be using a dos like system.

your keyboard is not a typewriter, nor is your mouse a console joystick.–umm….ok i guess

you just rant because you can–yes i cannot because you know anything. –and because i know enough to know how dumb you are and how little knowledge you have.

key commands are a language, far more intricate and powerful than anything you pack into 3,4, or 15 button mouse.–who is disputing that? wheather i use key alt+f+c to close a document or very easily use my mouse to hit the x and close it it's up to me. all i can say is that i'll use the simplest way. the mouse has been around since the late 60s(i believe), so its importance is as high as any other part of the computer.

don't tell me it sucks because you're illiterate–yeah, your mac sucks that's all. so does its one button mouse

i mean you can talk about this $hit all day, and you can compare between mice and keyboards, but trying to flame windows users, becasue they use a mouse and a keyboard, and how much better and faster and productive you are using an apple mouse and a keyborad, is the most arrogant, ignorant, disgusting lie ever told, as dumb and un-meaningful as its authors.

– by wd

keyboard and mouse(2:13pm est wed sep 17 2003)if all you do wd is surf the web and open and close windows, i guess you don't need to know key commands. but then again, you wouldn't need a lot of things, including more than one mouse button. if that's all you do, why do you whine about which computer you think is faster or better when you could use a palmpilot to do that. i'm talking about useability for professionals- you know- key commands inside programs- like flash or quark or photoshop? no amount of right clicking is going to be faster than key commands, so flame on, but there's not even an argument. – by death cube k

re:death…(3:07pm est wed sep 17 2003)if all you do wd is surf the web and open and close windows, i guess you don't need to know key commands.–exactly. i do not need to use commands. if i am in command line then i'll use commands. as for being inside an application(though i do not use any of those quark or photoshop or whatever), it's a personal choice as to what you like to use. yes, once you get used to it using the right mouse button or a shortcut command would be the same speed, but the point is *preference* and has nothing to do with as you put it: *i can't believe so many of you aren't smart enough to memorize the keyboard commands*. i have tried many commands in photoshop, and they are all the same as using the mouse, but not faster, actually many of them are slower(a 2 or 3 key combination against one click of a button and a selection). like i said, to insult other people's intelligence without grounds is not nice, especially when you make no sense.

but then again, you wouldn't need a lot of things, including more than one mouse button. if that's all you do, why do you whine about which computer you think is faster or better when you could use a palmpilot to do that. -yeah i could use my cell phone to check my emails. it takes me 5 minutes to login. i could not use a palmpilot to do crap. palms are a waste of money.

i'm talking about useability for professionals- you know- key commands inside programs- like flash or quark or photoshop? –like i said, i have used photoshop in windows, but i see no advantage of using any commands rather then the mouse in most cases.

no amount of right clicking is going to be faster than key commands, so flame on, but there's not even an argument.–no amount of commands is going to be faster then right clicking either. if there is, i guarantee you that for every faster command there are at least 10 other things you can do faster by using the mouse. on the other hand i am not a mac user, but i have used it a couple of times. no different than any other gui i've seen(a little uglier that's all). – by wd

wd(5:37pm est wed sep 17 2003)“-like i said, i have used photoshop in windows, but i see no advantage of using any commands rather then the mouse in most cases.”

do you believe in substance? find some! and then come back with something other than g-a-y comments.

you definitely seem to have a fixation with the homosexual lifestyle. i wonder why? – by geekthebarbarian

two buttons? how about 6?(6:19pm est wed sep 17 2003)two buttons? good lord…i can't exist with two buttons anymore…i would…shrivel and die. you ever try playing unreal2k3 with one button? or even two for that matter… i got two on my left thumb…one opens firebird and the other opens explorer…i have the noral left and right click…then i have the wheel, which has a button above and below it…the top one is to move forward and the bottom one to move back (back is closer because i use it a whole lot more than forward) and the last button just below the back button i use for double clicking…which i guess turn's into a single click by me. :-) mx700 from logitech baby…awe yeah – by distempered

1 button mice are not for gaming(8:18pm est wed sep 17 2003)most games require a 2 button mouse! (well like age of empires: left click to select, right click to move!) – by vlad

and vlad(10:30pm est wed sep 17 2003)chimes in to settle the whole dispute right there…. the line is drawn in the sand gentlemen…. – by dolphinflogger

why is it that(10:36pm est wed sep 17 2003)the mac community always flys in to butt heads with wd??? is it not unavoidably appearant that he is a moron? he's proved it time and time again… so why do you still give in to his rants and raves… i mean come on, you want to argue about something worthwhile, flame about processor speeds or os security and stability… but if the best that this kid can bring to the table is arguing that he can run his computer faster with the right mouse than with a computer, you know he's got nothing better to do…

if you just ignore him he'll go away… you don't have to point out the error of his ways… he isn't listening to you… he will sit arogantly, flaming as often as he can, and he will prove how stupid and ignorant he is time after time…. but really can we just try to ignore him? death cube k said it best “…there is no arguement here…” – by downwiththeman

i know.. i know…(12:11am est thu sep 18 2003)i agree with a lot of you here about the 2 button mouse. i'd love to see apple with a 2 button scroll wheel mouse. but jobs is too arrogant to give up on his one button. i say keep the one button, but make a damn 2 button scroll wheel also! on the other hand, i did get to sell my one buton pro mouse on ebay for like $60…

– by 3vil0||3

sdfsdd(9:41am est thu sep 18 2003)i want to buy one,

so i can throw it to apple steve jobs at one of his stupid keynotes,im pissed, i'm a hardcore mac user, and this is rediculouse.

i want a real mosue. – by asdfsdrf

internet surfing(11:06am est thu sep 18 2003)i personaly think that pressing down on my scroll wheel to go “back” and moving it up and down to see what the site is offering me, is faster and easier thanreaching to the keyboard and pressing down or up or delete (the delete button doesnt go “back” when youre typing) ordraging the mouse precisely to the back button. there are more reasons why its better. i couldn't surf as fast without my scroll mouse. i can't wait until i get the mouse with the scrol wheel that tilts and scrolls horizontaly. i think its already out. – by vlad

“i can't believe so many of you aren't smart enough to memorize the keyboard commands..there's no comparison- you just have to be smart enough to memorize the commands. i think apple believes that their simple users only need one button, while their power users are intelligent enough to use key commands.”

i agree that at one time the single button mouse was easier for neophytes, but back in the 80's oses didn't have as many options and functions as they do now. if 2-, 3- and multiple-button mice are so useless, then why do they sell so well (see above posts by apple users that have aftermarket mice)? if the users are all stupid, then why doesn't anyone make a one-button mouse for windows boxes? btw, i use a 2-button mouse with scroll wheel. i also use keyboard shortcuts when it's easier to do so (which depends greatly on the application). does that mean i'm stupid or smart?

seems to me someone has a bit of a superiority complex and needs to get the hell down off his high horse.

by the way, i wonder how many people posting here found it easier to click on the “submit” button instead of tabbing down to it then hitting enter? – by jrink

ok, jrink (2:13pm est thu sep 18 2003)missed death cube's point entirely. and you only need one button to click submit. – by son of death cube k

son(4:54pm est thu sep 18 2003)no, you missed my point entirely. apple markets their products at what dck called “simple users”, yet there is a strong market for 3rd party mice for macs. who is driving this market? the “simple users”!

why? apple is not fulfilling their user's hardware needs, so they get their mice elsewhere.

i see you recommend using a mouse to click on “submit” instead of a keyboard (as advocated by dck). thanks for trying! – by jrink

silly jrink….(7:09pm est thu sep 18 2003)no need to get all in a tizzy. why would i advocate using the keyboard to press the submit button? i wasn't talking about the market- i was talking about the philosophy- i am well aware that there are plenty of people who use and desire multi-button mice. apple believes that you can work just as fast with a one-button mouse as you can with a candy bar joystick monstrosity, and a lot faster if you have complete control over your keyboard, and i agree. they'll leave multi-button mice up to the third-parties. not trying to argue here- my son is right- you missed the point. – by death cube k

lol(8:28pm est thu sep 18 2003)wd needs to learn when to quit.

for a guy who carries such a big stick he sure gets the smackdown on a pretty regular basis.

“-like i said, i have used photoshop in windows, but i see no advantage of using any commands rather then the mouse in most cases. -wd”

“i guarantee you that for every faster command there are at least 10 other things you can do faster by using the mouse. -wd”

rofl– by gropo

gropo(9:53pm est thu sep 18 2003)to add insult to injury – why would anyone use the mouse, any kind of mouse – be it even two hundred button unit, instead of wacom tablet with photoshop? – by option click

2 buttons are better(12:01am est tue sep 23 2003)jobs just wants the 1 button because macs are known for it.

i far prefer a 2 button scrollwheel. – by -ner

why a wireless apple mouse?(11:57pm est tue sep 30 2003)i'm going to pick up a wireless apple mouse for my 12″ powerbook. why? personal preference. i like the apple mouse. can i give you any concrete reasons? not really. it's missing the extra button and a scroll-whell, but do i care? nope. i already own an rf wireless kensington mouse, but i'm replacing it with a wireless apple mouse just because i like the apple mouse. less functional maybe, but i just like them. – by dp_brian

mouse(8:22pm est tue nov 04 2003)i like key comandsi do not like the one button mouse though2 and a scrol pad are fine for me – by youallsuck

lame lame lame(3:38pm est sun mar 28 2004)personally i can navigate around the os other things using the keyboard. perhaps i find the mouse regardless if it's 1, 2, 3 or hell even 5 buttons a little distracting. trying not to blow my own horn but i can surf or move around the os much faster than most of my friends. i think this was enforced on me back in the day before i knew about cleaning the mouse with the ball. i would get so sick of it not moving right i decided to learn all the shortcut keys. i found it more productive using 90% keyboard. – by mark

computer calss(10:07am est wed sep 15 2004)what is the comparison of the keyborad and mouse?and how they are the smae. – by natcha simpone